The Shredder's Assassin: Revisited
by megatron124
Summary: 'The Shredder's Assassin' has been through the revisiting process and is better than before with longer chapters and corrected dialogue. Read it again, for the first time.
1. The Shredder's demise

The Shredder's demise

New York-8:32 p.m.

Within a moment, a mass of Foot Ninjas jumped up from the streets and onto the rooftops where they find the Turtles and Splinter all waiting for them. Not long after they arrived, so does their leader. The Shredder lands in front of his army to face his new adversaries and aims his gauntlet at ready. Mikey was startled by his appearance. He was getting scarier by the minute. "Dude…" he uttered.

Leo just looked at him as the orange turtle rubs the back his head but turn their attention on the Shredder. The Shredder sneers his eyes at the Mutants as he and his men are all prepared for battle and so we're the teens. Mikey tighten his bandana. "Let the butt-kicking begin." Raph declares. Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Donatello unsheathe their weapons and ready themselves for battle. "Foot Ninja:" the Shredder lifted his fists in the air. "ATTACK!" The Foot did what their master commanded and charged at the teens. And so did the teens. For the first strike, the Turtles and easily whacked away the first few which made Shredder not pleased.

During the battle, Splinter watches his sons in combat. "Remember my sons, even the mighty oak bends before the raging storm winds." He lectures to them. Mikey was nearby to hear what he said as he jumps up and punches down a Foot in the back. He looks up to his father with a confusion look. "Huh?" he answered. Not understanding what he meant, the rat face palm as he shakes his head and lets out a signs. He looks up to give a similar explanation. "Be careful and do not become overconfident!"

Raph charges at two Foot and tackles them to the ground. He then flips up to meet with another one with a Bo-Staff. The Foot swings the weapon at his head but the hothead ducks and kicks the black ninja away. Leo is dealing with his own set as leaps in the air and jumps on their shoulders and heads and kicks the last two he sees. Still with an inure foot, Mikey was doing fine by himself. He twirled his Nunchaku in the air when a Foot brings down his Bo-Staff on him but Mikey blocks it with his weapon. He then twists his Nunchaku over; locking the staff in and kick the Foot in the guts. Unfortunately, he kicked it with his injure foot. "Ow!" he yelps; grabbing his foot and begins to hop up and down in pain.

Not long, another Foot who was coming up right behind; preparing to grab him but Mikey saw him coming and sweep him under his foot. Too bad he used the wrong foot. "Ow! Ow!" he yelped again; hopping again. This was followed by another one and again, Mikey kicked him away with the same foot. Now, his foot was in pain. "Ow, ow, ow, ow." He uttered; grabbing his foot again while hoping as well. But his foot wasn't his main concern. With him distracted, the Shredder comes up to him and does a mighty kick to the chest which sends the orange turtle flying towards the water tower. He hits the support beam; shell-first and falls to the ground.

Thanks to the impact, Mikey winces in pain and grabs his foot. "YEOW!" he screamed. His yell was so loud that the birds that just happened to be near him flew off the ledge and flied away. But after the pain subsided, he was back on his feet and resume fighting. Don twirled his Bo-Staff and used the end to flip a Foot over his head. Another one was coming up behind him but Don was quick to jab him in the gut without looking behind. Don then looks up in shock to see another Foot flying towards him with a Katana; ready at hand. He strikes it down on the turtle's head but the purple turtle blocks the attack with his Bo-Staff, kicks him away and twirls his weapons again.

The Shredder leaps down behind him and prepares to strike the distracted turtle with his gauntlet. But he was kicked in the back by a red turtle who was not going to lose his brother to him. The Shredder falls forward but uses his hands to push off the floor, somersaults in the air and lands near his team of ninjas. Losing more ninjas by the second because of the team of teenagers, the Shredder was not going to give so easily. "GET THEM!" he bellows an order. The remaining of his team all leaped up and charged at the ninjas. One ninja throws a number of shurikens at Leo. With the help of his katanas, he spins them around; deflecting the on-coming attacks without hitting him.

One attack leads another. More Foot Ninjas approach the turtle as he gets ready to defend. The Foot brought down their katanas but Leo blocks the attack with all his might. He pushes the swords off his and delivers a spinning kick; knocking as many away as possible. One of them crashes into another power generator but instead of exploding and burst into flames, it only emitted smoke. Don uses his staff to pole vault into the air and brings his staff down on another Foot who block the attack. He strikes above but Don blocks that and flings it away; causing him to fall down.

The purple turtle spins around to protect his shell from a Foot with a Katana. But thanks to his Bo-Staff, it broke in half as the turtle does a side kick in the gut; sending him away. Don goes back to block the attack from the Foot with the Bo-Staff. Right now, his father was hasn't spoken a word until now. "Hold your staff higher. Sweep with the left foot from that position." The rat lectures his son. Just then, another ninja charges Don so the purple turtle pushes his attack off, sweeps his weapon at the on-coming Foot's feet that jumps the attack and goes back to the first attacker with the staff and blocks the attack. "Gee, now you're backseat-ninjaing me, Master Splinter." Don complains as he pushes the first on off and whacks the second one away before facing off against the Shredder who approaches him.

As quick as lightning, the Shredder delivers three palm hand strikes and finishing off with a deadly punch which sends the brainiac of the group flying in the air, slides across the roof and hits the wall shell-first; dropping his Bo-Staff in the process. A Foot was backing up as he tries to defend himself from the blue turtle on-coming sword attacks.

But once the Foot delivers an attack, Leo blocks and kicks him away. During that time, he was unaware of the Shredder's presence that lands right behinds him. He raised his gauntlet; ready to deal the deadly strike against the leader of the team. He brings it down; preparing for the blow… "NO!" his attack was halted by the red turtle who saved his brother from his doom with his Sais. He tries to hold them against the Shredder's blade. But using his free hand, the Ninja Master grabs his belt and throws him with ease at the same wall; near his younger brother. Mikey was surrounded by a group of Foot Ninja. The orange turtle looks around before he whacks all of them away and knocks them to the ground. Despite his injure foot; he did a pretty good job. But he was not ready for the next one. The Shredder appears right behind.

But just before the turtle faces him, the Shredder knocks him away and was thrown into the same wall and right next to his brothers. With two more to go, the Shredder will so be victorious. The next one was the blue turtle himself. He slashes one away, turns around, leaps in the air and kicks another to the ground. He then prepares to look around to see if they were more but to his horror, he looks up to see the Shredder who was standing right front of him. The Shredder then sucker punches him in the face and was soon met up with the wall and his brothers who all crowded around their eldest. The Shredder walked towards them; preparing to deal with the final blow as most of his men crawled away.

The Shredder halts in front of them and raised his gauntlet in the air as light flashes across the blades. "Now none of you will leave here alive!" Just as the shredder was about to slay the turtles, master splinter intervened." Shredder, noooo!" he cried as he blocked shredder's claw." You destroyed my family once, I will not allow that to happen again." "No man-or freak can defeat me!" Shredder said while struggling with Splinter." That remains to be seen." Splinter struck the Shredder with his cane and leaped toward the water tower.

Raging with fury, the Shredder dashed for Splinter, kicking and slashing while Splinter avoided with ease. As the Shredder slashed at one of the water towers supports, Splinter saw this and had an idea. With each slash, Shredder missed Splinter and got the supports instead. The tower began creaking and swaying as Splinter said, "This is for my Master Yoshi!" He leaped in the air and kicked down the remaining support. The turtles climbed onto a higher ground, while shredder and the Foot tried to run, only to be washed off the building by the rushing water.

Trying to regain steadiness, the Shredder looked up only to see the tower fall and crush him. "Master Splinter…" Leo said who was just as shocked as his brothers are. "Are you okay?" Mikey asked them. "Come, we have avenged my Master Yoshi." He turns to faces his sons and walks off. "Let us go home." His children couldn't agree more as they follow their father. Leo helped his younger brother by grabbed Mikey's arm and rests it around his neck. "I'm all over that." Don agreed. "Yeah." Raph also agreed. "I gotta tell ya, home never sounded so good." Leo stated. As the turtles headed home, the Shredder's hand emerged from the damage, following his body. Hun approached him and helped him up. Police sirens were heard in a distance as shredder said" Foot ninja-disappear. Hun, take a squad of Foot and search the sewers." Shredder along with the remaining Foot made their way to their headquarters, knowing this was not the end.


	2. At it again

At it again

California, I-75 interstate

''Grandpa-Ben's hitting me!" Gwen shouted as she and Ben were fighting as usual. "Cut-it-OUT dweeb!'' Ben said in retort. They had been fighting like this all summer, and Grampa max had just about enough. The two continued to poke and annoy each other 'till one of them gave up.

"Quit poking me, Ben! Or I'll tell-" "What, tell Grampa?" Ben interrupted. Fed up, Gwen smacked Ben upside the head. Finally, Grampa broke the fight by saying," Alright you two, I've had just about enough! Now I'm gonna go grab something for this headache, so _please_ try not to kill each other while I'm gone."

As Grampa closed the Rust bucket's door, Ben and Gwen started fighting again. "You heard Grampa, keep your two hands to yourself." With a mischievous grin on his face, Ben activated the omnitrix and selected four arms. A flash of green light appeared then disappeared as Four arms was revealed.

He started poking Gwen with two of his arms and said, "What? I'm keeping two hands to myself." "That does it." Using her magic, Gwen sent Ben out of the Rust bucket flying, and the fight began.

They started with a one-on-one fist fight, Gwen using her spells and Ben Four arms. Blow after blow, Ben kept missing Gwen, so he decided to use his surroundings to his advantage. He began throwing signs and other objects at Gwen, though she easily avoided and deflected them.

Grampa Max was checking out at the rest stop's gas station as he saw what was happening to the truck lot. "Oh no, not again."

As Four arms picked up a 16-wheeler, Gwen used her magic and opened a portal to use as a shield. The truck was thrown at Gwen, but missed although an explosion occurred. The force of the blast knocked Gwen off balance and she was sucked in the portal. Four arms leaped and tried to save her, but it was too late. "Gwen, I'm sorry" Ben said as he transformed back to normal.


	3. New York, New York

New York, New York

Manhattan, New York

Four arms threw a large 16-wheeler at Gwen, but at it hit the shield, the explosion caused her to lose balance and fly into the portal. As soon as she was sucked in, Gwen came flying out of the portal and landed on the hard concrete in an alley.

"Ugghh, where am I?" Gwen said while brushing off what had just happened. "Ben! That dweeb, I'll have his head for this. This is all his fault!" She had just been transported to another dimension via magic.

Gwen had tried to create another portal, but her powers were gone. "Great, no magic. I'll just have to find my way around." Without hesitation, she began to walk through the streets of Manhattan. Looking around, she had noticed little difference from her New York and this one.

Same buildings, shops, you name it. The only real difference was that this New York was a bit, darker, more edgy. She had noticed that she was starting to get hungry, so she scanned the area for a pizza place nearby. "'Jay's pizza', well what the heck?" Gwen walked in and immediately ordered a large pepperoni pizza.

She sat down and began eating, while thinking about Ben and Grampa. She had realized that ben and her never meant harm to each other. Reminiscing on this and other memories, she hadn't noticed what was going on outside.

"Give us the money, lady" one thug wearing a dragon tattoo said. "Yeah, the money-where is it?" the other said. "I don't know honest! I don't have any money, please, let me go!" "Listen lady, I'm only gonna say it once more- Where-is-the-Money?!" "HEEEEELLLLPPPP!" the lady screamed but no one heard. "That ain't gonna do 'ya no good, toots." said their leader, Dragon face.

Gwen was just finishing her pizza when she had finally seen what was happening. She left the cash on the table and ran out the door. "Hey" she yelled. "Leave her alone!" She approached the thugs with caution, not knowing who they were.

The lady suddenly ran as one of the thugs tried to stop her, but couldn't grab her. "Let her go. We've got this one." Gwen got in her fighting stance when she said, "Usually I like to know who's butt I'm kicking." Dragon face stepped forward. "Kid, you're dealing with the toughest street gang in New York." "Which would be?'' Gwen replied. The gang then said in unison, "The purple dragons!"


	4. Th purple dragons

The Purple Dragons

"Usually, I'd like to know who's butt I'm kicking." said Gwen with a smirk on her face. The street gang then said in unison "The purple dragons!"

There was no way out-it was a dead end ally without any escape routes. "You're going down kid." said Dragon face. "Nobody messes with the purple dragons!" said Two Ton. "Any last words, punk?" a grinning Dragon Face said.

Gwen was then lit up with anger. "Punk?! Who are you calling a punk?'' Gwen then leaped up and back kicked one of the dragons. "Get her!" said one of the thugs as they all ran toward Gwen.

Using only her wits and her martial arts skill, Gwen landed a flying kick to Two Ton's stomach which caused him to back into the wall. One of the dragons swung his crowbar at Gwen although she dodged with ease.

She returned the favor by kicking his groin and punched his face, knocking him down. Three more thugs came toward her, attacking simultaneously. One of them managed to hit Gwen, though it had little effect.

Dodging the other's attacks, she leaped up and used a 360 degree spin kick, forcing them nearly unconscious. This time, Dragon face dashed toward her, while Gwen grabbed a crowbar a wacked him upside the head.

"Too easy. Ben puts up more of fight than this." Gwen said wiping the dust off her. She had single handedly taken down the purple dragons. Trying to get up, Dragon face ordered the others to get out of there. "Come on, this kid ain't worth it!" They had all ran out of there as fast as they could.

"Now, to find a good hotel to-Holy cow!". She was at loss off words because of what she was seeing above her. Dozens of ninjas were assembled on the roof, and they were wearing strange symbols, some sort of dragon's foot?

Without hesitation, the ninjas jumped down and formed a circle around her. "Ninjas?!- in New York?". She then repositioned herself in a fighting stance. Without saying a word, the ninjas immediately leaped toward her.

Gwen had tried to defeat her opponents, but she could barely lay a hand on any one of them. They were too quick and too fast for her to attack. She couldn't keep this up forever. They were too quick and stealthy for her skills.

One after another, the ninjas laid punches and kicks on her so fast she finally collapsed and lost conscious. One of the ninjas then put Gwen on his shoulder, and flew off with the rest of the ninjas into the night.


	5. She's Gone

She's Gone

Ben just couldn't bear what had happened. He had seen Gwen, his cousin disappear without a trace right before his eyes. "Gwen, I'm sorry. I never meant it to go this far." Grampa, who among others had seen the light show, dropped his food and ran out the door.

"Ben! What the blue blazes happened?" Too emotional to say anything, Ben picked up Gwen's bracelet that she was wearing. "Quit the games, ben. Where's Gwen?" replied Max. "She's gone Grampa." said ben.

"What do you mean 'gone'? Where's Gwen?" After a few minutes of explaining what just happened, Grampa was filled with both worry and anger. "We'll talk about _you_ later, but right now let's go find her. Now you said something about a portal?" said Grampa. Ben answered,

"Yes, she was sucked into a portal she created." Thinking about this, Grampa replied "Well that means if she created it, then she must be somewhere familiar to her."

Both of them were thinking about that while driving down the road. Ben eliminated the possibility of her parents, aunt lily would've called if Gwen was there, and everything else seemed hopeless. Ben began to cry, feeling hurt believing it was his fault. "Hey, come on sport. It wasn't entirely your fault, you didn't mean for this to happen."

Now use that brain of yours and help us all." said Grampa. Wiping the tears off, Ben suddenly thought of something, something that could save Gwen. "Grampa, I got it. I know how to find Gwen." "That's more like it. Just tell me where I need to go."

California state: Juvenile hall

"Kevin Levin, you have some visitors here to see you." said the guard who was in charge of that cell block. "Now who'd wanna see little ol' me?" The guard, tired and frustrated, only said "Watch it, kid."

Kevin Levin had been in juvenile hall for the last year for his past actions/crimes. "You have got to be kidding me. Well if it isn't Ben Tennyson-long time no see. I see "said Kevin to Ben.

"What brings you here? Come to bail me out?" "Maybe, but that all depends if you cooperate ." replied Ben. Grampa stood in the corner, knowing Ben could take care of this.

Again, after telling what happened to Kevin, he made his offer, "Alright, I'll help you find Gwen. But only on one condition." Ben raised his eyebrow and replied "Which would be?"

With a slight smirk, Kevin told him "you know how I like your cousin, right? Tell you what, you set up a date between me and her, deal?". Ben, hoping he wouldn't regret his decision, shook Kevin's hand and said, "Deal."


	6. Oroku Saki's Deal

Oroku Saki's deal

I had no idea what happened to me. Last thing I remember is fighting a street gang called the purple dragons, and getting my butt kicked by some ninjas. Everything else after that is just blackness. Just now, I had regained consciousness, but have no idea where I am.

"How did I even get here?", I said to myself as I looked around for anything familiar. "Finally! A door." Gwen began running toward it and tried to open it but was greeted by Hun. "Going somewhere, kid?" said Hun as he lifted Gwen up and threw her back down.

She jumped up and tried to open the door, but then noticed some shadows in front of her. Gwen turned around and said, "Not _you_ guys again!" Foot ninjas then appeared from all four corners of the room, while more leaped down from the balcony. Gwen readied herself for another fight as she told them "_This_ time, you're going down.

"Immediately, the Foot began attacking her, but this time Gwen dodged and countered every blow. With every punch she threw Gwen followed it up with a kick, knocking her opponents back and leaving them on the ground.

Catching her breath, Gwen heard clapping behind her. A man then stepped from the shadows and said "Impressive, very impressive. My agent said you were good, but their description doesn't do you justice."

Gwen looked at the man in both anger and confusion. "Who are you?" she said. The man replied "I am Oroku Saki, 8th generation master of ninjitsu. And, _you_ are?" "Gwen, Gwen Tennyson." she answered. Oroku Saki continued talking, "You are, younger, much more than I had expected."

Gwen retorted that with "Did you see what I did to your ninjas!? Do you think a kid could've done that?" Saki only laughed and said "That is much easier to believe than you might imagine. I have seen enough of this world to expect the extraordinary, and you _are_ extraordinary. But I did bring you here to flatter you.", he said.

Gwen looked at him and said "Wait, You brought me here?" Saki replied "Yes, I felt it was urgent that we meet. There are things you need to know." "Why did you kidnap me? Why did you bring me here?" Gwen told him. "I saw what skills you had when you fought my ninjas, skills I could use." Gwen looked at him with confusion, "Why me, why now?"

Saki then explained to her "You are caught in the middle of a battle that is so much bigger than yourself. But you must know, there is a force, a corrupt and evil force that is out there right now. Working its insidious tentacles into every aspect of our world. It is an organization devoted to obtaining power through crime, political manipulation, corruption, on a global level."

He then continued, "Unfortunately, the only thing standing against this evil force is me and my, humble army of ninjas. But there are those who stand in my way, those who work with my enemy. I hope you find it in your heart to join me and help me defeat my enemy."

Gwen immediately regained her senses and said "You think for a minute I actually believed a word of what you said!? There is no way I'm working for you!"

Saki replied only with "I see, if _that_ is your final decision," he said no more, and disappeared in the shadows. Hun stepped into the room a grabbed Gwen by the shirt, dragging her out and taking her to some sort of lab.

Hun threw Gwen onto some sort of table and was strapped down by a scientist wearing an eye-patch. The man said only "Don't worry, child. When I'm through here, you won't remember anything." After that, Gwen faded out into unconsciousness.


	7. The Shredder Strikes Back pt1

The Shredder Strikes Back pt.1

It was a cloudy yet beautiful morning in Manhattan. The turtles along with splinter are residing in April o' Neil's apartment until the foot ninja leave the sewers. Mikey, Donnie and Raph are sleeping on the couch, Master Splinter is meditating on the recliner, and Leo is looking out onto the city waiting, watching.

Splinter breathed calmly as he meditated in the chair, listening to Mikey's snoring as everyone else slept. Early morning sunlight streamed through the windows, but everyone remained asleep. While Donnie was dreaming, his foot rested on top of Mikey."Geez, what died?" he said.

Splinter then awoke and said to Leo "Your morning training my son?" Leo then replied "Yes, Sensei. While the city is still quiet." Splinter said, "Your discipline is commendable my Leonardo, have a good run."

"But I trust you are not thinking of going to scout the lair alone." He said firmly. Leo, though lying, said "Why would I do that? Just because the sewer tunnels are overrun with foot ninja, so we're forced to hide here at April's like cowards?!" Splinter calmly said "You ask a question that is not a question. If we are to succeed against our foes, we will need to act together as a _team_, _not _as rash individuals."

"I understand, Master Splinter." Leo sighed. "I am curious, though. With the Shredder gone, what are the Foot Ninja up to?"

"Patience, my son." Splinter assured, returning to his other three still-snoozing sons. "I have a feeling we will find out all too soon." Splinter then went to sit back down and when he looked back Leo had left.

Splinter stared at the floor worriedly. The silence was interrupted by Mikey's shout of surprise. Raph jolted awake and Donnie nearly fell of the backrest of the couch, each of them brandishing their weapons.

"What?" Raph demanded. "What is it?" Mikey laughed. "Oh man. I slept on my hand and it got numb and it hit me in the face and I thought someone slapped me. Don't you hate that?"

Raph, Donnie, and Splinter stared at him. Raph was the first to walk off as he sheathed his sais. "Words fail me."

Mikey suddenly flipped over Raph and darted into the bathroom, laughing. "First dibs on the bathroom!" He slammed the door shut, leaving Raph to only sigh and hit his head against the door.

Raph didn't look too excited, but just huffed and sat down on the couch, waiting for Mikey to get out of the bathroom. About ten minutes later, Mikey was in the kitchen cooking breakfast. Everyone else lounged about the house, waiting for the food. Soon, April emerged from her room, dressed in a pink bathrobe and yawning.

"I really do have four turtles and a rat sleeping in my living room." April tiredly realized. "I thought I was just having a really bad dream." April sniffed the air. "Hey, what's burning?"

"Mikey's cooking." Raph replied dully. "Hey, scrambled is okay with everyone, right?" Mikey called from the kitchen.

"Again?" everyone but Splinter groaned. Mikey turned to look at the living room when he noticed something. "Hey guys, where's Leo?"

"He is engaged in his morning exercises." Splinter reported. Donnie looked out the window. "If he doesn't get back soon, he's gonna get soaked." "That sky's looking angry." Donnie chimed in as lighting flashed and thunder boomed.

Leonardo had begun his exercises; running, leaping and jumping from building to building. As he leaped from a nearby roof, several foot ninja had spotted him, and immediately went after him. Running acroos the building, it didn't take leo long to figure out he was being followed. One of the ninjas lept toward him, but leo quickly ducked and the ninja missed. He turned around and saw the other Foot.

Leo then drew his sword and readied himself. But as he looked up he noticed several more ninja. Hoping to avoid a fight, he jumped in the air, cut a clothes line and swung to the opposite building. When he landed, he saw they were quickly approaching him. So he began running from the ninja.

"Got it!" Raph announced. "Next!" April walked in and saw Mikey and Raph tossing dishes across the room. "No!" "One more!" Mikey tossed a final plate. "Up high!"

"Not the china!" April cried. "Whoops!" Raph winced as the plate flew past his fingers and crashed to the floor. April groaned. "Why should today be any different?"

Splinter, from behind his newspaper, simply said, "Kids." "Sorry, April." Mikey said sincerely. Raph was sincere as well. "Yeah, really…uh….you got any glue?"

April only smiled softly and sat down at the table, pulling her hair up in its usual bun. "Don't sweat it. I realize it's tough for six, uh, people to share a one-person apartment." Donnie put a hand on her shoulder. "We'll be out of your way as soon as we can."

"Don't get me wrong." April assured quickly. "I love you guys, I really do. It's just….my place is too small." Splinter and Raph joined them at the table. "We will leave as soon as the Foot Ninja are gone from the tunnels surrounding our lair." Splinter promised.

April looked up and noticed Mikey balancing her china plates and a jar of jam on his arms and head. "Um, can I help you with that very delicate china, Mikey?"

"I got it, thanks." Mikey assured, obviously not taking the hint. Much to April's horror, he threw the dishes into the air. April covered her eyes and waited for the crashing dishes, but it never came. When she opened her eyes, a plate of scrambled eggs sat before each person at the table. Mikey smirked and laughed like it was nothing. "Ninja training." He said simply before sitting down. He and Raph began wolfing down their eggs noisily, some of the eggs dripping down their chins.

"Say what you like about Mikey," Raph said as he ate. "The guy knows how to scramble an egg." "So, one would think that table manners were a part of their training?" April asked Splinter.

The rat cast a sideways glance at his two noisy sons. "One would think." Mikey looked up and noticed the extra plate. "Shouldn't Leo have been back by now?"

"Hey, of the four of us, Leo's the one turtle you never have to worry about." Donnie assured.

Leo climbed on top of the nearby rooftop, catching his breath. As he gained traction, he noticed that the foot had arrived before him. He drew his other blade, ready for a fight. The sky had lit up with lightning and thunder as Leo began fighting his opponents.

Dodging every attack, he countered and succeeded, defeating the ninjas. It began pouring rain as Leo made his back to the apartment. Looking up, he noticed three foot tech ninja, which immediately leaped down toward Leo.

Redrawing his swords, the ninja then pressed a cloaking device button, rendering them invisible. Leo looked around and readied himself, but the ninja had the advantage. They struck and hit Leo with full force, but Leo didn't give up. He calmed down, and blind-folded himself so he could fight.

One of the ninjas approached him, but Leo kicked him away. Another approached but his cloaking device was sliced by Leo's sword, then he was knocked out. Leo waited for the other, and sensing him he jumped up and defeated the last one. Fixing his mask, he then set back for the apartment once more.

"May I have your attention please?" Mikey's voice sounded behind her and made her turn. Donnie and Raph were on the couch, Mikey in front of the football game on TV they were watching, and April with Splinter at the table, staring at a map. Mikey suddenly let out a monstrous burp, lasting a full three maybe five seconds. Donnie and Raph began clapping for their brother.

"Cool." Donnie mused. Mikey only smiled and bowed. "Ew!" April groaned, covering her eyes with her hand. "This is what I live with all the time." Splinter groaned with her. "I can't believe I just clapped for that." Realizing what they had done, Raph and Donnie stopped clapping.

"That's it." Raph's tone was a annoyed one. "I'm gonna look for Leo so we can get this show on the road. No offense, April, but we really need to get back to our lair. I'm goin' stir-crazy."

"You are going nowhere until your brother returns." Splinter ordered. "Sit." "Man, what a jip." Raph growled as he flopped back on the couch. "We gotta sit around on our butts while Leo's out there havin' all the fun."

Leo came onto another building only to discover more foot ninja but this time with Hun. The ninjas stepped back while Hun cracked his knuckles in anger, and then ran toward Leonardo.

Leo jumped out of the way as Hun ran into him but missed. Hun then saw a large pipe, broke it off and used it as a weapon. Hun slashed and attacked Leo only to have him block every blow. Enraged, Hun dashed toward Leo, only to be forced into a concrete wall. "Boo!" Leo yelled at the remaining ninjas, causing them to fall off the building.

He then ran off, knowing there would be more. As Leo was jumping buildings, dozens of foot ninja were following him. Leo finally stopped to catch his breath, as did the foot, along with one furious Hun. The foot surrounded Leo, trying to intimidate him. Leo gathered all of his strength and took out the ninjas one by one.

Hun ran toward Leo, but with lighting speed he grabbed an antenna, flipped backwards and let go as it rammed Hun's face. Hun was about to cave in Leo when he saw "reinforcements", and stepped back laughing.

The "reinforcements" was one lowly ninja, only this one wasn't wearing a mask, and it was a girl; a small, ten year old girl whose name was Gwen Tennyson. But relying on past experiences, Leo didn't let his guard down.

Gwen lept toward Leo, landing a hard kick in his chest. She didn't let up for a second-Leo was getting beaten and injured worse. Managing to dodge a few attacks, he had tried to counter the blows but either they were blocked or when he did hit her it was as if she didn't feel a thing. Bruised and hurt, Leo stepped back trying to gain traction.

Suddenly, Gwen stepped back with the other foot ninja and bowed. Leo looked with confusion and turned around only to see four ninja, but these too were different. They were wearing traditional Japanese clothing, glowing red eyes, torn capes and deadly weapons; they were known as the elite guards.

Leo then regained focus, drew his swords and leaped toward the ninjas, only for them to disappear as he landed, then reappear with Gwen, Hun and the other foot ninjas. In unison, they all faced toward another building and then bowed.

Leo looked to see to what or whom they were bowing, only to be filled with shock and fear at the same time saying "No!''. On that other building, a man was standing there in samurai armor, a man whose name was the shredder. The elite guard then appeared around Leonardo and ruthlessly attacked him. Leo tried to counter, but was too slow and injured to do so. He fell down and tried to regain his breath and strength.

He leaped back up and tried once more to defeat his opponents, only to be injured worse and thrown off the building.

Mikey looked up at the clock, now reading well half past nine. "Hey guys, I'm really starting to get worried. Leo should've checked in by now."

"I know this is a first, but I'm thinking Mikey's right." Donnie agreed. Raph turned to Splinter. "Master Splinter?" he asked questioningly.

Splinter didn't say anything for a moment, even when April put a hand on his shoulder. He knew for a fact that Leo's exercises did not last this long; the only other explanation was that something happened to him. It didn't matter the severity; he could not wait any longer. "Go." He ordered.

"Geez…" Mikey breathed. "What if something really happened to him?" Everyone jumped with a gasp as Leo suddenly crashed through the window and hit the floor, nearly unmoving. They shouted his name and rushed to his side. Mikey picked up his head and pulled him upright. The turtle's eyes wearily blinked open, but all he saw were fuzzy shapes that looked like his brothers and their voices sounded like echoes.

Raph stood, glaring. He drew his sais and made for the broken window. "I'm gonna find out who did this."

"No…Raph…wait…." Leo's weak voice made them pause and they hurried to his side. Leo leaned in close so his whispers did not escape their ears. "He's…back…the Shredder…" He suddenly fell backwards, his eyes closing as he slipped into unconsciousness. Everyone gasped, exchanging shocked looks.

Minutes later, as the foot went off to find Leonardo, only Gwen and the elite stayed. The Shredder began to approach them as they bowed before him. Gwen then lifted up Leonardo's two swords in respect.

Shredder took the blades and held them in the air and broke them in half as a sign, a sign for which no one could defeat him. He threw the broken blades on the ground and laughed evilly, for the Shredder had returned.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	8. Across Dimensions

Across Dimensions

"So, do we have a deal?' said an eager Ben. "Yeah'' replied Kevin Levin, "but on one condition; you set me up on a date with Gwen. Deal?''. Ben shook hands with him saying ''Deal.''

Hours passed as both Ben and Grampa waited for Kevin to be released on his monthly parole so they could search for Gwen. Kevin came out of the cell block and got into the Rust bucket with Grampa and Ben.

"So tell me what happened.'' Kevin said with his normal attitude, which of course was ticking Ben off. Calming himself down, he answered "We were stopping at a rest area when Gwen and I got in a fight-" "Well, that's typical" Kevin interrupted.

"As I was saying" Ben resumed '' We got in a fight which pretty much messed up the place, you know, me having the omnitrix and her having her powers. But then she opened a portal to get rid of the debris, and then she was, was sucked in because I threw a 16 wheeler and it hit her."

Kevin surprisingly felt sorry for him and put a hand on his shoulder. Ben tried to hold back his tears when Kevin spoke up. "Hey-I might be your archrival, but that don't mean I won't help. Also, if you're thinking when this is over we're all pals then you've got another thing coming Tennyson." Grampa then spoke up and said "Hey guys, we're here."

They pulled into the rest area and the trio got out as Ben led them to where Gwen was. Kevin's eyes widened as he saw the size of the crater that was left, but pulled himself together and began his work. Ben and Grampa stepped back as Kevin's hands lit up and after a few seconds something happened.

"Guys, I think I can re-open the portal, but I can only get one of you through!" Ben stepped forward and said "I'll go" which was replied by Grampa with "Ben, no. I can't let you go. Let me-" ''Grampa, please! I can do this! I have to do this.'' Ben said pulling away from Grampa.

With that, ben jumped through the portal and just as quickly it closed. "Good luck Ben." said Grampa. The portal opened in Manhattan, New York as Ben was sent flying to the ground. He wiped off the dust and began his search.

He was awestruck at the size and design of the buildings and how the city looked overall. Although he's already seen his dimension's version of New York, this one had a sort of 'dark deco' art. He crossed the street and saw what looked like an antique shop reading 'Second time around'.

"What the heck's going on here?" Ben said as he saw dozens of police surrounding the place. As he went to ask what was happening, he could've swore that he saw Gwen in one of the windows surrounded in a brawl. Suddenly, a huge explosion sent ben and the cops flying a hundred yards back. "No," he said crying as flames and smoke engulfed the entire building.


	9. The Shredder Strikes Back pt 2

The Shredder strikes back pt.2

The Elite ninja sent Leonardo flying through April's apartment window, causing everyone to panic. Everyone crouched over the seriously injured Leonardo in shock. Enraged, Raph asks Leo "Who did this to you?!"

Leo wasn't able to answer because of his wounds, so Raph heads toward the window and vows to get revenge. "I'm gonna find out who did this.'' Leo said exasperating "No...Raph…w-wait. He's back...the... Shredder...". With that, Leo fell unconscious.

Frightened and confused, April asks "What? What did he say?". Mikey replies "He said 'the Shredder's back' ''.Confused and skeptical, Raph says "No way, we were all there, we all saw what happened that night on the roof".

"Now none of you will leave here alive!" Splinter intervened before Shredder could deliver the final blow." Shredder, noooo!" he cried as he blocked Shredder's claw." You destroyed my family once, I will not allow that to happen again." Splinter struck the Shredder with his cane and leaped toward the water tower.

Raging with fury, the Shredder dashed for Splinter, kicking and slashing while Splinter avoided with ease. As the Shredder slashed at one of the water towers supports, Splinter saw this and had an idea. With each slash, Shredder missed Splinter and got the supports instead. The tower began creaking and swaying as Splinter said, "This is for my Master Yoshi!" He leaped in the air and kicked down the remaining support.

Shredder and the Foot tried to run, only to be washed off the building by the rushing water. Trying to regain steadiness, the Shredder looked up only to see the tower fall and crush him.

Remembering that dreadful night, Donnie explained "There's no way _any_ human could've survived that." "We're not dealing with _any_ human. This is the Shredder." reminded Raph. Scared out of his shell, Mikey says "If you read comic books, you'd know the bad guy always comes back, ALWAYS!" "We need to get Leo out of here." April urged.

"She is right." Splinter agreed. "We must leave now." Mikey looks out the window and notices that there are many Foot ninja assembled on the rooftops of all the buildings surrounding April's apartment. "Guys, we have company!" Mikey says in fear.

"What's the plan?" Mikey asked desperately. "Leo's always the one with the plan. So what are we gonna do without Leo to come up with a plan?" "No time for a plan." Raph said simply.

"Why not?" Mikey asked worriedly. The response came from some Foot Ninja bursting through the windows and smashing the glass. Mikey let out a small, girl-like scream. The two stepped back as the Foot Ninja approached them, brandishing their katanas threateningly. Mikey leaped to the couch and pushed it away from the wall to create a protective barrier while more ninja burst through the kitchen windows.

"Master Splinter!" Donnie called. "Grab Leo! We'll cover you!" He drew his bō staff and skillfully blocked one of the ninja's swords, swinging his staff around as he fought the assassins. While the Turtles and Splinter battled the Foot, April dragged Leo to a sheltered spot and tried to tend to his wounds.

Suddenly, a Foot Ninja much larger than his comrades, jumped on top of the couch and held his sword raised, ready to strike the orange-masked turtle. "No!" Splinter yelled as he jumped into the air, landing a hard kick to the large Foot's chest sending him flying backwards and to the floor. Splinter turned to Mikey as he peered over the couch.

"No!" Splinter growled as he leaped into the air, landing a hard kick to the large Foot's chest and sending him flying backwards and to the floor. Splinter turned to Mikey as he peered over the couch. "I will hold them off. Help April get your brother down the stairs and out through the antique shop!"

Splinter began whacking ninjas left, right, and center with his walking stick, knocking back any ninja that approached him.

Splinter glared and suddenly swung his fist up and backwards, his knuckles connecting with the nose of the Foot Ninja trying to sneak up behind him. The familiar sound of a bowstring reached the rat's ears as an was arrow aimed for his chest. He caught the projectile skillfully and snapped the arrow in half. "Enough! Raphael, Donatello, cover the rear! Michelangelo, I told you to help April get Leonardo downstairs!"

Mikey jumped up as some Foots approached him and his brother and April. He swung his nunchakus and beat back the ninjas, allowing April to drape Leo's arm over her shoulders and haul him up to his feet.

"I can walk….." Leo groaned, trying to push April off him. He groaned as another wave of pain hit him hard. April grunted a little, readjusting the turtle. "Leo, lean on me."

"April….leave me…." Leo urged. "Get away if you can…..this is our fight…not yours." "Not my fight?" April repeated angrily. "Look, Leo, we're all family now. I could never run out on you!"

April smiled too. "Let's go." April opened the door, but yelped at the sight of many more Foot Ninja on the other side, all of them armed with katanas. They advanced for the April and Leo, but Leo suddenly kicked the door shut and right into their faces.

The ninjas' grunts of pain sounded, followed by a few thuds. Seconds later, the ninjas burst through the door, but walked right past April and Leo as they leaned against the wall. Mikey leaped for a ninja and kicked one into his friends, causing a domino effect that sent the ninjas tumbling down the stairs.

"Ladies and gentlemen, turtles and rats, run do not walk to the nearest exit!" Mikey announced from the doorway. Donnie then yelled to Raph "Raph, this bus is leaving!"

He, Raph, and Splinter slowly backed out the door, but the Foot Ninjas continued to advance. Splinter and Donnie hurried out to join April, Mikey and Leo at the stairs. Splinter took Leo's arm and helped April support him.

"Mikey, make yourself useful and scout out the shop." Mikey replied, "Gulp! No problem."Mikey then scouts ahead and discovers that four Elite Guards are waiting for them in the store. "Nice hats." says Mikey while avoiding a thrown spear. As Mikey runs back up-stairs, Donnie tells Mikey "Wrong way, Mikey!"

Mikey answers "Wrong way my foot! Poor choice of words. Major ambush down there!'' "We don't have a choice, there pouring in through the windows upstairs." Donnie replies. "Hey!" Raph called down the stairs as he blocked attack after attack. "What's the story down there?"

"There's some seriously mean-looking guys down there!" Mikey called. "Mean-looking?" Donnie scoffed. "Duh." "Don, wait!" Mikey cried, following his brother

"Raph!" April called. "The guys ran into something bad in the shop!" "Hey, I got my hands full up here!" Raph grunted. Splinter ran up the stairs, just as a ninja raised his sword and swung it down for Raph. The turtle's sais saved him from getting sliced in half.

"Go." Splinter ordered, punching the ninja aside. "Assist your brothers. I will protect Leonardo." Raph nodded and ran down the stairs, jumping over Leo and April as he joined Donnie and Mikey.

Splinter began fighting the ninjas as they crowded around him. A Foot Ninja suddenly kicked him sharply in the back, sending him crashing to the floor. He tumbled and rolled, landing right next to the broken banister.

Splinter grabbed two poles from the banister and broke them free, turning to face the incoming ninjas. Using the poles and his elbows, Splinter beat back about three more ninjas as they swung their katanas for him.

He knocked his opponents unconscious, dropped the wood in his hands, and used his foot to kick his walking stick back up to his hand. When Raph got to the shop, he Donnie and Mikey began fighting the elite ninja, though with little results. Even the three of them weren't enough to take them out.

"Master Splinter!" April called worriedly. "He's getting worse!" "We cannot stay here any longer!" Splinter urged, kicking a ninja over the railing and to the floor. Still, the ninjas continued to advance towards him as he backed down the stairs.

"Leo!" Raph called, trying to rouse his brother as he helped him stand. But he was forced to push Leo aside as the trident-wielding elite attacked him again. Raph drew his sais and spun them, glaring at the ninja.

April suddenly screamed, backing away from Hun as he advanced towards her. Raph ran forward, jumped up, and kicked Hun back through the door and away from April who slammed the door shut after him. Raph, Donnie and Mikey rushed to Leo's side, staring at him worriedly. But the blue-clad turtle could only groan in pain.

Eventually, they hurt the ninja somewhat. Suddenly, the elites disappeared in a puff of smoke, only to reappear at the front door of the antique shop. Someone outside kicked the door straight off its hinges and marched inside. The turtles and Splinter immediately knew who this was, though they had no idea who that kid was standing next to the armored man. "Oh crud." Raph said. "It's really him." Mikey sighed.

"Like Leo said." Shredder took a few steps toward them, standing proud like a king. "You freaks have been a thorn in my side long enough. Splinter suddenly leaped into the air and landed between Shredder and his sons, glaring harshly at Shredder. But he didn't attack; not yet. "No one opposes the Shredder."

Shredder declared. "And now I will have my revenge for our last encounter. Say farewell to each other while you still can." "Oh yeah Mr. Spikey Pants?" Mikey scoffed. "Well, you're the one who should be saying….farewell…..to…..uh…to yourself!" "Oh yeah, Mikey." Raph groaned. "That got him." "Hey, I'm under a lot of pressure here." Mikey protested. "Silence!" Shredder shouted. This is going to be quite interesting.

"This attack is nothing more than a cowardly gambit." Splinter snapped at the Shredder. "Wearing us down by sheer numbers. It is not the way of the true warrior!" Shredder's eyes widened a little, obviously insulted by such a comment. But his glare returned seconds later. "Guys, I say we shred his butt once and for all." Raph proposed. "For Leo. You with me?" Donnie twirled his bō. "Till the end."

"Which hopefully isn't going to be anytime soon." Mikey added. "Right?" Donnie, Raph, and Mikey suddenly leaped for Shredder in anger. Raph came first, with a swift kick that Shredder dodged before planting his fist in the turtle's face.

Raph hit the ground as Mikey ran up, only for Shredder to swipe his claws and force Mikey to the ground. Donnie leaped into the air and slammed his staff down. Shredder stepped aside quickly and kicked Donnie sharply in the side, stealing his bō and forcing him to fly backwards and hit a pole. Then the elite guard, foot ninja and Gwen stood by their master. "Finish them off!'' Shredder said with hatred.

"This rodent is mine." With that, the elite guard Gwen and the foot attacked the turtles. Gwen was first to attack them, and she beat them with ease. "Who the heck is _this_ kid?!" Raph pondered. Donnie replied "Who cares, just protect Leo." Just as Gwen and the foot were gaining advantage, the sound of a motorcycle engine reached their ears and made them look outside.

Gwen ducked and covered her head as a motorcycle suddenly crashed through the window, screeching to a halt. The rider revved his bike and charged for the elite ninjas, shifting the bike to slam into the ninjas and send three of them flying out the broken window. He turned to the final ninja and drove his bike straight towards it.

The ninja jumped onto the bike, but the rider slammed on the brakes and ninja flew backwards, hit a cabinet, and caused the piece of furniture to fall on him. The rider put the kickstand down and dismounted the bike, lowering the hood of his trench coat-like jacket. "Now that's what I call crashing a party."

"Casey!" Raph called happily. The rider in the hockey mask, Casey, pulled a wooden baseball bat from the bag on his back. "Though I've never seen a lamer party in my life!" He knocked two elites aside when they approached him. "Where's the band?" He approached April and looked down. "You okay, babe?" Casey asked April.

April smirked with a raised eyebrow. "Don't call me babe. "Shredder, having seen his best ninjas beaten so easily by a mere vigilante, growled in frustration and ordered, "Obliterate him!" The Foot Ninjas advanced for Casey, armed with swords and other sharp weapons. "This can't be the band." Casey scoffed, stowing his bat away and drawing a golf club and hockey stick.

"I want rock n' roll, man. Good thing I brought my own drumsticks!" He twirled his weapons as Raph, Donnie, and Mikey stood up with their respective weapons, ready to fight again.

"Now, who wants to be the drum?" "Goongala, goongala!" Casey shouted, charging into battle with Mikey, Donnie, Raph and Splinter right behind him. The fight began again with renewed vigor as the Foot Ninja and even Gwen were beaten back. As the heroes were just winning, Hun burst through the door and went straight for April and Leo. As Hun was about to hit April, Casey turned to Hun and glared, jumping away from his fight to deal with the brute.

He caught Hun's fist in his golf club just as he pulled it back, interrupting the hit meant for April. "Hun, never ever threaten her!" He dodged Hun's swinging fists and whacked him on the back of the head with his hockey stick forcing the large man to stumble into the ninjas. The redhead smiled. "Casey…I…I….."

"Yeah, well…." Casey coughed nervously. "What a day, huh? Well, gotta run!" Raph, Donnie and Mikey fought off more ninjas when they saw the shredder walk to Leo, raising his gauntlet to strike. The guys tried to stop them, but Gwen interfered and knocked them to the ground.

Splinter saw this, attacked Gwen leaving her unconscious and he leaped at Shredder yelling "NO!" Splinter suddenly kicked Shredder multiple times in the chest, knocking him away from Leo and April. The rat back flipped and landed softly, glaring at Shredder. "You strike a wounded warrior, you have no honor."

"I fight to win!" Shredder snapped, making his point clear on the matter. Splinter only glared and jumped aside when Shredder lunged for him. But Shredder's attacks became fiercer and faster, connecting with Splinter's chest and stomach with each blow. "Leo, don't!" April shouted, but it was too late. Leo rammed into a dish cabinet and sent it toppling, missing Shredder and Splinter by inches. The adrenaline faded though, and Leo fell backwards.

April caught him quickly, but the turtle had now gone limp. "Leonardo…" Splinter whispered in despair. "No." Splinter growled, stepping between shredder and his sons. "I will not allow you to destroy my family." "My sons, retreat!" He jumped into the air, Shredder following him. But he moved swiftly to land softly on the floor and kicked a cabinet over on top of the Shredder, trapping him long enough to run to Leo's side. "Great!" Raph grunted as he knocked a ninja aside and ducked from a sword aimed for his head.

"But where to?" "Back there!" April pointed to a metal door on the back wall. "You got it!" Mikey nodded, grabbing the door and pulling it open. "Everybody in here! We can hold them off!" April and Splinter carefully dragged Leo and Gwen inside the room while the others fought off the ninjas as they backed up.

With that, the Shredder disappeared into the blazing fire. "Well this is great." Raph said sarcastically. "Small, dark, and no way out. Perfect for making our last stand." "It's a walk-in cooler." April explained. "This shop used to be a grocery store once upon a time." "Fascinating." Raph sighed, though he clearly did not mean it

Shredder suddenly burst from the cabinet on top of him, shouting in anger. The foot were trying to open the door to retrieve Gwen and the turtles but couldn't. All of a sudden, police sirens were heard in the distance.

"Foot ninjas –disappear." Shredder ordered his troops. He then grabbed a metal object and placed it so it would jam the door. He released a fire bomb and it exploded releasing massive flames. He then cut open the large gas pipe by the door, saying "Like the phoenix, I have risen from the ashes. And into my fire, you shall fall."

Mikey then piped up."Kinda quiet out there. You think they all just went home?" "Yeah, we scared 'em off by running into a closet and locking the door." Raph scoffed, then sniffed the air. "Hey, I smell smoke." Donnie sniffed as well. "I smell gas." "Mikey…." Raph glared at his brother, who only shrugged. "No, not that kind of gas." Donnie clarified. "Hey, this door's getting hot." Mikey pulled on the handle. "It's jammed! It won't open!"

He banged his shoulder on the door, but it didn't help. "Gas plus flame equals…" Casey's eyes widened. "Let's book, now!" "We gotta get out of here!" Raph called, stabbing at the door with his sais. Michelangelo started pounding on the door with his nunchucks.

The flames became larger and larger as they inched closer to the gas leak, and when they did the shop blew up, causing the entire building to become engulfed with flames and explosions.

**TO BE CONTINUED?**


	10. Tales of Leo

Tales of Leo

30 seconds earlier...

"I have risen from the ashes" said the Shredder as he sliced open the gas pipe. Inside the freezer door, Mikey and Raph were banging on the door with their weapons to get it open. "Trapped liked rats. No offense sensei.'' retorted Mikey as he and the others were backing away from the blazing door.

Donnie walked over to splinter, helping Leonardo. "Leo's in really bad shape. We need to get him out of here!'' On the other side of the space, April was tending to an unconscious Gwen. Evenly concerned, April stated "What about the girl? We can't leave her here." "Forget her, April! She beat the shell out of us, nearly killed Leo, and now you want to save her?!" angrily said Raph.

Splinter intervened the two's argument and said "Raphael! A true warrior does not leave another behind, no matter what the circumstances!"

At the back of the space, April started moving supplies around in order to get to an opening. "April, what are you doing?" questioned Casey. "When we first moved in, there was a hole in the wall where a cooling unit was removed. There!'' Outside the door, the fire was getting worse as the gas pipe's leaking rapidly increased.

Raph immediately punctured the metal blocking the opening with his sai, breaking it loose. "That's it- everybody book!" said Raph as everyone started getting out. Casey, followed by Mikey and Raph carrying out Gwen, and Donnie and splinter carrying out Leo. The group ran as fast and as far away as they could from the building. Finally, the gas leakage met the blazing fire, and the shop exploded, followed by the rest of the building as it all went up in fire and smoke.

Once they had all gotten to safety, April started crying into her hands, obviously crushed by the event. Casey wrapped his arms around her, finally raising his mask to show his face. "Forgive me, Miss O'Neil." Splinter spoke softly.

"But we must leave the past behind for now if we are to have a future. Leonardo and the young one are badly injured and need a safe place to heal." "What about the lair?" Mikey suggested. "Shredder has a whole ninja army down in the sewers, remember?" Donnie reminded him. "And we're in no shape to fight."

"Hey, we don't run from nobody." Raph said firmly, punching his palm. "And yet we must." Splinter said with equal firmness, lowering Raph's fist. "But….where?" April asked, tears still streaming down her cheeks.

"Fellas, I know just the place." Casey assured them. He held April in his supportive embrace as they all followed the vigilante down the alleyways.

Casey stopped right in front of an old-fashioned car with a large grey horse trailer attached to the back. Casey tossed his things in the backseat and pulled out some thick blankets. "It'll be cold where we're going and we can't let you guys be seen. So hold onto these while you're in the trailer. Sorry, but I'm basically throwing you in a makeshift cooler."

"Thank you, Mr. Jones." Splinter said with a small bow. "You're help is most appreciated; I'm sure my sons and I can endure a little cold." Casey only nodded and helped the turtles and Splinter into the trailer.

Hours passed as they travelled down the interstate and out of New York. Leo and Gwen were in the same condition, injured and unconscious. Donnie, Mikey, and Raph shivered under their blankets. Leo remained still and quiet under his blanket, his head resting in Splinter's lap. The rat looked undeterred by the cold, only staring worriedly at his blue-masked son.

"Man," Mikey shivered. "It sucks being cold-blooded." Worried, Donnie stared at Leo. "Are they gonna make it, Sensei?" Only time will tell." Splinter said simply, not taking his eyes off Leo or Gwen. Everyone looked up when the trailer suddenly slowed and then stopped, making them jerk a little.

Casey opened up the back doors with a smile. "Well, here we are! Grandma Jones' old farmhouse!" The turtles looked out and noticed the very large, very old house, with the peeling paints and the shutters falling from their hinges.

"This is where we're staying?" complained Mikey "Hey, we can fix it up easy." Casey assured. "Let's just get you guys inside and start a fire. How's Leo?" "Still unconscious." Splinter said, staring worriedly at the blue-masked turtle.

Casey sighed. "Come on, let's get him inside." Donnie and Raph shed their blankets and gently picked up Leo, carrying him out of the trailer with Splinter close by his side, while Mikey and April brought Gwen inside.

Donnie and Mikey picked up the blankets and followed everyone to the main room of the farmhouse. Casey turned on a lamp, casting the room in a soft glow that coupled with the light outside to give the room a more comfortable feeling.

Mikey and Casey jogged around back for firewood while Donnie, Raph, and Splinter carefully laid Leo out on the couch. April laid Gwen on the other couch by the fire and draped one of the blankets over her.

Still, neither Leo nor Gwen moved, made a sound nor gave any indication that they were even alive. "All right, so it needs some fixing up." Casey admitted when he and Mikey returned. "The place got a little run-down since Grandma passed away." April twisted the vent to the chimney, releasing an avalanche of soot and dust that created a cloud in the room. "Mikey coughed. "When was that? In the late Jurassic?"

"Dude, you live in a sewer!" Casey countered. A groan caught everyone's attention, and the boys immediately dropped their wood to join everyone at Leo's side. "Leo?" Donnie asked hopefully. But Leo remained still and silent, forcing everyone to think the groan was imagined.

Foot Headquarters

"The Foot's back in business, profits are up, and the turtles are history. Why are we not celebrating, master?" questioned Hun. Pacing back and forth, Saki answered "Where are the bodies!?" "We burned that building to the ground. I think that we can safely assume-"

Saki knocked over a fire pedestal in anger. "We can assume nothing!" "My enemies assumed they had destroyed me, and it cost them dearly." "I can ill-afford to make the same mistake. I require evidence of their demise." explained Saki.

"Scientific proof, perhaps?" Dr. Baxter Stockman wheeled into the room, with more injuries than before. He had a neck brace, a robotic arm, and a self-powered wheel chair to replace his legs. Annoyed with the man, Saki told him "Bah, I did not send for you, Stockman."

"And that was your first mistake." explained Stockman. Holding Hun back, Saki replied "Your arrogance is exceeded by your inability to learn from your, punishments. What do want?" "A simple exchange of goods and services."

Stockman took out a scanning device as he explained "I can provide you the most sophisticated DNA analysis of Miss O' Neil's destroyed shop." "You'll know beyond the shadow of a doubt if the turtles survived or not."

Saki, somewhat interested, told Stockman "And, in exchange?" Stockman went over to an artifact in a glass casing. "Full access to this fascinating artifact you fished from the east river. A brief glimpse of its technological secrets allowed me to create the Foot tech ninjas."

Stockman narrowed his eyes as he said "Imagine what I might do were I given complete access to it. A win-win proposition I'd say." Saki thought about this then replied "Provide me with proof that the accursed turtles are no more, and you shall be so rewarded."

"Fail me, and your next punishment will be your_ final_ punishment!" Saki walked out of the room, while Hun walked up to Stockman, cracked his knuckles and walked out.

Night came, a fire was made, and everyone settled into their temporary new home. But Leo still hadn't stirred. Donnie and Splinter tried to at least get him to drink something, but nothing went down the unconscious turtle's throat.

So they could only gather around him, watching with anticipation and worry. Splinter knelt beside Leo's head, staring at him and willing his son to wake up. Though not as injured as Leo, April still kept an eye on Gwen.

Raph punched the wall in frustration. "Why won't he wake up?" "Healing takes time." Splinter explained. He placed a comforting hand on Leo's head. "And Leonardo is recovering from more than just physical wounds. His spirit has also been grievously injured." Donnie stared at Leo. "You think he can hear us?" he asked Splinter.

"Perhaps." Splinter nodded, moving away and letting Donnie kneel beside Leo. "Hey Leo. It's me, Don." Donnie said tentatively. "Listen, you're gonna pull through this. I know you are. You have to. I mean, you know what kind of trouble we get into without you." "Like…" Donnie thought for a moment. "Remember the time I built that remote control car?"

"Check out the turning radius on this thing, Leo!" Donnie said with a smile as he controlled the toy car, making it do hairpin turns and sharp ninety degree turns all over the sewer pipe. Leo only watched with amazement, truly fascinated with his brother's high level of intelligence. However, the excitement was short-lived when the car swerved and suddenly fell into the river of sewer water the boys stood beside. Instantly the toy car was whisked away. "Awww." Donnie groaned.

"Remind me to never let you behind the wheel of a real car." Leo joked. "Hang on." Donnie said, handing the remote to Leo. "I'll get it!" "There was all kinds of debris clogging up the tunnel. And the sewers were overflowing with the heavy rains we just had. I wasn't paying attention to that. I just wanted my car back." Donnie didn't see the hulking bits of debris until it caught the stick he held and pulled him into the water. Donnie was swept away, just like his car.

"Donnie!" Leo called, running after his brother. Donnie struggled in the current until it suddenly pulled him right over a waterfall and into a large pool. He popped up two seconds later, but jerked a little when he felt something around his foot.

"Leo!" Donnie cried. "I'm stuck! I can't get my leg free!" Leo hurried to the edge of the tunnel, his brother's cries echoing in the chamber. Meanwhile, the water rose higher and higher until it covered Donnie's head, forcing him to submerge beneath the waves. He futilely tried to pull his leg free, but it was firmly wedged between some wood and other wreckage under the water. Leo jumped down to a pipe sticking out of the cement and dived into the waves, right to his brother's foot. Donnie floated freely in the water, slipping into unconsciousness. Leo grabbed the beam keeping his brother under the water and pulled on it with all his strength, successfully dislodging the wood and freeing Donnie. He grabbed Donnie's plastron and pulled him up as he swam to the surface, breaking free with a gasp. He coughed as he swam to a nearby tunnel, pulling him and Donnie onto the solid ground. He collapsed, laying on the ground and sighing. The two brothers laid flat on their shells, staring up at the ceiling and panting. "What?" Donnie sighed. "Ya didn't get the car?"

"You really came through for me that day, Leo." Donnie finished. "You always do. And I know you will again." Raph scoffed. "Looks like you got him hanging on your every word, Don." Suddenly, Leo moaned, shifting a little in his fitful slumber. Everyone stared at him as Leo shook his head, as though having a bad dream. "Hey, I think he heard ya, Raphie!" Casey said. "Maybe talking to him does help." April added hopefully. "It is said that the voice of a loved one can guide a lost spirit back to its home." Splinter spoke wisely.

Mind if I take a crack at it?" Mikey asked. He knelt beside Leo, looking a little nervous. "Listen, bro. Just like….concentrate on my voice. Come on, Leo, you know how focused you get when you set your mind on something." "Like, remember that time you were trying to perfect your katas?"

Leo kept a hard and determined gaze as he worked through his katas, his mind playing back the moves Splinter showed him again and again. He cried out in effort a few times, imagining that he was putting his strikes right into an enemy ninja's chest. Mikey casually walked past him, bobbing his head to the music he listened to. He paused and looked back at Leo as the blue-clad turtle paused in an elegant crane stance, his gaze unwavering. The little turtle smirked.

"Hey! Leo!" Mikey called, lowering his headphones. "You seen my game guy anywhere?" But Leo refused to move, his determined glare staring at nothing in particular, even when Mikey got in his range of vision. Mikey waved his hand in front of Leo's face. "Hello? Anyone home?" "Nothing in the world was gonna break your concentration. But that wasn't gonna stop me from trying." Mikey pulled open his mouth and stuck out his tongue. Leo's gaze turned to a tired one, but he still held his stance.

"Huh. You know how I hate to be ignored." Mikey grabbed a balloon and blew it up, holding it right in front of Leo's face. He took a pin and slowly stuck it into the balloon until it popped, but Leo remained undaunted. Mikey frowned, but kept trying. He put funny glasses with a face nose and mustache on Leo and held up a mirror for the turtle to see. He juggled garlic and then tossed it into his mouth; he burped into Leo's face, but there was no effect. "So then I decided if I couldn't make you laugh, maybe I should just make you say 'Ow'."

Mikey took out his nunchakus and swung them around, smirking craftily. He swung one of the nunchakus towards his brother, who finally moved to grab the weapon, sweep Mikey's legs, jump onto the orange-clad turtle, and pin him to the ground with his own nunchaku. "Was I disturbing you?" Mikey asked with a smile.

"Leo, when you put your mind to something, you're unstoppable." Mikey sighed. "So, how about using that famous focus of yours to come back to us?" Raph scoffed. "You ask me, Leo's not coming back because he's afraid."

"No one asked you." Mikey snapped, jabbing a finger towards Raph. "You know, he got his butt whooped." Raph reminded him. "And now he's too chicken to come back and face it!" "That's enough, Raph!" Donnie ordered. Raph jerked away from Donnie. "Well I say who needs ya? It's not like we can't get on without you playing fearless leader." After he said that, tears formed in his eyes.

Raph angrily wiped his eyes dry. "Back in the day I always figured I would be the top turtle. I was the strongest, bravest."

"Remember the time I brought you to that closed-off section of the sewer? We were playing 'Follow the Leader'."

Raph yanked the boards free from the tunnel entrance, tossing them aside. Leo tried to stop him. "Raph, we can't go in there!" "Hey, it's my turn!" Raph protested. "You're supposed to follow my lead!"

"But Splinter says—" "Splinter says, Splinter says." Raph mocked. "When are ya gonna think for yourself? That's what a real leader does. Now catch me if you can!" He climbed through the opening to the tunnel, forcing Leo to follow him. Raph jumped on a piece of wood and surfed it down the sewer stream, whooping and laughing. Leo followed suit, keeping his eyes on his reckless brother. Raph suddenly jumped off when the tunnel ended and spilled into a larger river.

"Huh." He shrugged. "Dead end. Must've taken a wrong turn." A strange sound caught his attention and he looked down, staring into the waters. "Uh…..Leo?" He suddenly jumped back with a shout when a large, albino crocodile burst from the water, snarling and roaring as it chased the tiny turtle back through the tunnel. Raph didn't dare look back, but he felt the large reptile's hot breath on his skin. A force suddenly collided with him and sent him tumbling to the ground. "Come on!" Leo urged. "Let's jet!" He leaped over the crocodile's tail and took off down the sewers. "No way!" Raph refused. "This walking handbag's intrudin' on our turf!" "You're the intruder, shell-for-brains!" Leo called. "Now let's get out of here!"

"Hey, I'm the leader this turn, remember?" Raph suddenly jumped up and grabbed the croc's snout, holding his jaw shut. The croc struggled and flailed for a moment before diving into deeper water, carrying Raph with it. He resurfaced again seconds later, swinging the small turtle around who could only hold on tight and shout in surprise.

"Can I offer a strategy tip?" Leo offered. "No!" Raph snapped. "I got him on the ropes! He's right where I want him!" But the croc suddenly slammed Raph into a wall, knocking him off its snout and causing him to slump to the ground. Raph rubbed his head, trying to shake the headache, and looked up to see a set of sharp, gleaming white teeth aimed right for him.

"Right." Leo sighed. "That's it!" He jumped into the air and landed right behind the croc's head. Raph watched in amazement as Leo pressed his fingers into the side of the croc's mouth and the great white beast slumped to the ground, unconscious. "What'd you do?" Raph asked. "What'd you do?" "Pressure points." Leo said as he slid off the croc and dusted off his hands. "Alligator pressure points?" "Little trick Master Splinter taught me. Come on, he won't sleep forever. How about another round of 'Follow the Leader'? As in, back home." Raph stared after his brother for a moment before following him as they darted through the sewer tunnels, leaving the somewhat terrifying experience behind them. "Lead the way!" Raph agreed with a smile.

"I don't even know why I told you that story." Raph huffed. "I guess ya just…..I mean…..what I'm trying to say is…." Raph didn't even finish; he held his head in his hand, his tears leaking from his eyes again. Splinter put a comforting paw on his son's shoulder. "Your brother hears you, Raphael. He understands." Raph didn't answer. He moved from Splinter to stand by the window, staring outside at the snow. He leaned against the window, pressing his forehead to the glass. Splinter, kneeling beside his son's head once more. "Leonardo, my son. You must gather all your strength and confront your fear. Just as you did many years ago." "Come on, Sensei." Raph scoffed. "Leo's never been afraid of nothing in his life." "Not true, my son." Splinter shook his head. "Do you recall, Leonardo, our early days?" "We were scavenging for food and supplies."

Splinter looked over the contents of his bag before glancing over at young Leonardo, shoving an old piece of computer hardware into his own bag.

"Come, my son." Splinter motioned for him to follow. "There are more useful items to be found on the upper levels." Leo nodded and followed his father up a metal ladder, closer to the surface. Leo stared uncertainly at the ladder, noting how high it would take him from the solid ground beneath his feet. But he pushed himself to climb after his rat father, keeping his eyes on the rungs of the ladder. "These tunnels stretch for miles in all directions." Splinter explained as Leo followed. "To avoid losing your way, you must observe your surroundings carefully." Leo obeyed, looking all around him and absorbing the look of the tunnel. But when he looked down, the vertigo made his woozy and dizzy.

"Come along, Leonardo." Splinter urged. "We are nearly at the top." Leo trembled as he held onto the metal ladder for dear life. "I can't!" "Leonardo, you must!" Splinter urged.

Leo struggled to pull himself up, but he slipped and his bag fell from his hands and into the darkness below. "No! No!" He panicked, but suddenly a clawed hand grabbed his shell and pulled him up. Splinter allowed Leo to take a hold of his neck and continued the climb, his heart hurting from feeling his son tremble in fear.

"It was then that I realized you had an irrational and paralyzing fear of heights. In the weeks that followed, I worked closely to help you overcome your fear."

Leo skillfully performed his katas for Splinter, all while jumping from one stump to another. The small pieces of bamboo stood no taller than six inches, and Leo looked confident as ever. Slowly, day by day, Splinter raised the height of the poles and started blindfolding Leo so he wouldn't look down. Each time, Leo performed magnificently. "Focusing on the way of balance. Gradually building your confidence." Leo eventually made it to the point where he performed the kata on poles at least ten feet in height, perhaps more. "Now, my son." Splinter instructed. "Remove your blindfold."

Leo obeyed, and his eyes widened when he saw how high he stood. He shouted in fear and wobbled a little before he plummeted straight to the ground and hit the safety net below. He looked up as Splinter approached him, but lowered his eyes when the rat shook his head.

"I was beginning to wonder if you would ever conquer the dark imagines of your mind. But I was unwilling to give up." Splinter wasn't as tall as a normal human, but he was still too tall to stand upright in the tunnel. So he crawled along his stomach, Leo mimicking his movements. They soon stopped when the tunnel dropped off into a swirling pool of water below them. Splinter jumped down to one of the many pipes that crisscrossed the large chamber and took a hold of a vertical pipe leading straight up to another tunnel far above his head. "We must continue on, Leonardo." Splinter ordered as he began climbing the pipe. "You go ahead, Master Splinter." Leo gulped. "I'll go around the long way."

"That could take hours, my son." Splinter reminded him. "That's okay." Leo assured hurriedly. "I could use the exercise." Splinter was about to snap at his son when a creaking sound met his ears. Before he could react, the pipe suddenly bent and creaked and started falling, taking Splinter with it. Leo's eyes widened. "Master Splinter!" The pipe suddenly jerked to a halt, throwing Splinter off the metal. The sharp point caught the hem of his robes and halted his descent, but the fabric immediately started tearing.

"Oh no." Leo groaned. "Master Splinter!" Without thinking, he suddenly gave a tremendous leap that sent him straight for the pipe, grabbing on and holding tight. He glanced down at the water and piping down below, involuntarily noting that if he and/or Splinter fell, they would either drown in the water or crack open their skulls on the metal. Either way, they were dead. Leo gulped and clutched the pipe. "Don't look down. Don't look down." He muttered to himself as he inched across the pipe and closer to his master. He finally got close enough and reached a hand out, calling, "Grab on!" Splinter turned just enough to reach for his son and grabbed his hand. Leo hurriedly pulled Splinter up onto the pipe and sighed. He still looked terrified, but not as much as before, and Splinter couldn't help but smile. However, when they began inching across the pipe, it began to creak and jerk again. "We'll never make it back in time!" Leo said, panicked.

"Then we must forge ahead, Leonardo." Splinter said simply. He reached into a pocket and pulled out a length of rope attached to a small grappling hook. He spun the hook around and then threw it, catching the bars of a grate on the other side of the chamber. He tugged on the rope to make sure it was secure and pulled Leo onto his back. He swung off the pipe, feeling Leo's grip tighten, and landed softly in the tunnel down below before yanking his hook free.

Leo jumped down from his master's shoulders. "But…you could've saved yourself…at any time." "And you would still be consumed by your fear." Splinter reminded him, stowing the rope away. "By focusing on the task at hand, you were able to clear your mind of all distractions."

"Do so again." Splinter ordered gently. "Ignore the fear, my son. Let your spirit heal. Find your way home. Return to us." Leo did not move. He hardly breathed. Everyone stared at him worriedly, fearing the worst. "Is he….." Mikey gulped. "No….fear…." Leo whispered. "We thought you were gone, bro." Raph said with a smirk.

"I was." Leo croaked. "But…you brought me back…..all of you." "You fought your way back, my son." Splinter said with a smile. "You have done well."

"Thank you…Sensei…" Leo smiled softly. "The danger has passed." Splinter sighed. "Now we must let him rest." After April finished tending to Gwen, the group moved away into the other room, leaving Leo and Gwen to finally rest peacefully.

9:17 p.m.-Foot headquarters

"This is your conclusive proof?!" questioned Oroku Saki, holding what seemed to one of the turtles masks. "That is merely a souvenir of your victory. Consider it-a gift. This is my conclusive proof." Baxter stockman continued, "Tell-tale signs of mutated DNA. Or in lamas terms-" "Turtle" interrupted Saki.

Stockman continued "Someone's been doing his homework. No doubt one as intelligent as you would recognize that the sheer amount of DNA recovered can only lead to one conclusion." "The turtles perished in the blaze." Stated Saki, then finished "And what of my 'agent', Stockman?"

Stockman answered "I'm-afraid she did not survive. But at least your enemies have been vanquished." Though somewhat grieving, Saki grinned at the fact his hated enemies were no more. Stockman saw this and noted "So that's what you look like when you're pleased. I've always wandered." He rolled over to the strange object in a glass case. "Now, about my reward?"

"I will have a team of foot technicians deliver it to your lab in the morning. Now, if you will excuse me, I have other pressing matters to attend to." Saki said leaving his chambers. Stockman looked back at the object, smiling evilly.

"Fool. You let your guard down the minute you believed your enemies vanquished. Soon, the technological secrets locked within this artifact will give me power beyond reckoning! And that's when Baxter stockman stops taking punishment, and starts dishing it out! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"


	11. The Hitchhiker

The Hitchhiker

Ben couldn't what had just happened. One minute he saw Gwen in the middle of brawl, being knocked out, and seemingly caught in an explosion. It all happened so fast, he didn't know what to do. He suddenly realized that Grampa was counting on him to get Gwen back.

"How am I gonna tell Grampa that, she's gone?" he said walking away. Ben walked only a few feet, when he thought he had heard talking and other noises coming from the ally.

He walked to the back of an ally when he saw three turtles, a rat helping a fourth turtle with two others carrying out a Gwen. "Come on, my truck's down the road a ways and I got a trailer hooked on back for you guys." said the guy wearing a coat and a hockey mask. "Oh, no you don't!" Ben hid and then slapped down on his omnitrix set on Grey matter.

As the trailer started to pull out, Grey matter jumped and held on to one of the exhaust pipes. The vehicle made its way out of New York, and into the country side. Though it was an old car making loud noises, Grey matter could still hear what was being said inside.

"Man, it sucks being cold-blooded." Then Ben two others talking "Are they gonna make it, Sensei?" "Only time will tell." 'They?' Ben thought to himself. 'They must mean Gwen and that other creature!'

Ben and everyone else inside looked up when the trailer suddenly slowed and then stopped, making them jerk a little, although the sudden stop sent grey matter flying off the pipes. When grey matter got up he quickly ran and hid behind one of the tall trees. He pressed the omnitrix symbol on his chest then reverted back to normal.

"Well, here we are! Grandma Jones' old farmhouse!" Ben looked at the place and noticed the very large, old house, with the peeling paints and the shutters falling from their hinges. "This is where we're staying?" complained one the turtle creatures.

"Hey, we can fix it up easy." The hockey masked man assured. "Let's just get you guys inside and start a fire. How's Leo?" "Still unconscious." said the rat, staring worriedly at the blue-masked turtle. "Yeah, don't worry about the kid she'll be 'fine'" ben sarcastically said. "Come on, let's get them inside." sighed the hockey man.

Two of the turtle creatures shed their blankets and gently picked up their injured comrade, carrying him out of the trailer with the rat close by his side, while another turtle and the woman brought Gwen inside.

Hours passed like seconds as Ben waited outside, trying not to make aware his presence. Again, thanks to his omnitrix he could stay warm by using heat blast, though he wasn't aware he was lying on a tree, so the tree's roots melted causing the whole tree to fall on Ben.

Mikey and Casey jogged around back to the barn for some extra firewood when they noticed the fallen tree. "Huh, I don't remember that tree being there. Oh well." said Casey "And less work for us.". added Mikey while the two cut some wood off. The two went back inside, and Heat blast melted his way out of the tree.

Ben reverted back to normal and quietly walked over to the farmhouse. He tried to listen to what they were saying, but could barely make it out. He jumped back because of the sudden jolt of the wall. "Why won't he wake up?"

"Healing takes time, and Leonardo is recovering from more than physical wounds.'' He listened to some more and thought to himself 'They must have been in that brawl back in New York.'

Inside, the turtles, Splinter, April and Casey were inside trying to revive their friend and brother. Ben saw that woman occasionally checked on Gwen, but mostly paid attention to Leo.

So Ben sat down and dozed off after all that had happened that day and the previous ones. Another hour had gone by, and ben woke up then walked back to the window. When he only saw Gwen and the injured turtle, he knew the others had left.

Looking for a good way to sneak in, he saw the turtles, the rat and the woman walking out. When they saw Ben they all stood in shock. Ben was about to run for it, but before he could he was knocked out by a baseball bat.


	12. Monster Hunter

Monster Hunter

Ben was knocked out cold after being hit by Casey's bat. "Casey, why did you hit him?!" yelled April. Casey replied "What else was I supposed to do? He saw the guys and what they are, what's to stop him from blowing our secret?"

After receiving a smack upside the head from April, Raph walked up to Casey and said "Ya' know, she does have a point Casey, sort of." "Let's bring him inside." suggested Donnie "And hope he wakes up" added Mikey.

They brought ben inside and sat him down in the recliner. A while later, Casey walked in after taking a stroll outside leaving snow tracks on the floor. "No, no, noooooo!" screamed April . "Casey jones, I just mopped the floor-out! Out you big, careless jerk!" Trying to avoid being hit by the mop, Casey yelled "You can't kick me out of here, girl-zilla. This is my grandma's house, so it's my house!"

April glared at him, looking ready to whack his head clean off with the mop. Casey gulped a little. "Uh guys, I'll be outside if anyone needs me." He immediately walked out the door, leaving more snow tracks on the floor. Splinter chuckled at the situation, obviously amused.

April growled, marching into the kitchen. "If I need a Neanderthal I'll give a yell!" She slammed the door shut. Raph yawned a little as he came down the stairs. "Hey, where is everybody?" "Casey's been ejected from the ballpark." Donnie laughed. "And April's in the kitchen. I think Mikey's out exploring in the woods."

"Despite explicit instructions to stay near the house." Splinter added. "And Leo?" Raph asked. "He's… kinda been moping around in the barn all morning." Donnie reported. "Again?" Raph sighed. "Your brother has suffered injuries both physical and spiritual, Raphael." Splinter explained. "And he will need the support of all of us if his wounds are to fully heal."

After two days of being unconscious, Gwen finally opened her eyes and looked at her new surroundings. "So, decided to finally wake up huh?" said Raph as he walked over to Gwen, nearly freaked out. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" screamed Gwen, nearly fainting. Raph, annoyed and fed up, said only "Listen kid, I'm only gonna say this once. Never, ever do that again, capeche?!"

"Don't mind him" said Donnie trying to calm her down. "He's what you might call 'short-tempered'."Wh-who are you, what are you? And how did I get here?!" asked a panicked Gwen. "Hey, could you guys keep it down?'' Ben said waking up. "Ben?" "Gwen!" the two cousins got up and wrapped each other in a bear hug, which ended abruptly with awkwardness, and an argument.

"This is all, your fault Ben! If you hadn't started that fight I never would've been-""Whoa, my fault? How is this my fault?! You're in it just as much as I am, so don't play innocent 'dweeb'!" As the two kept yelling and fighting, Donnie stepped off to the side and commented "Man, those two remind me of leo and Raph, only more Raph this time."

April suddenly stomped in the room and plopped down on the couch, folding her arms. "Ugh, what is it about Casey that gets under my skin? He's so…so…..UGH!'' "Master Splinter, maybe you could teach me to meditate so I wouldn't be so angry at him." April requested kindly. "Even meditation has its limits." Splinter said.

Calming down, she saw that both Ben and Gwen awake and introduced herself, followed by the guys and splinter. An hour passed by while Ben and Gwen were listening to splinter tell them of his and the turtles origin story, and of their enemy shredder. Gwen then told them how she arrived here, and how the shredder brainwashed her and made her his personal assassin.

Suddenly, the sound of screeching tires sounded from outside. Everyone froze, staring towards the windows. April stood to draw the shades, but when she looked back at everyone they had pressed themselves against a door, hid under a table, crouched under a windowsill, or disappeared behind the recliner.

"Welcome, adventure seekers, to another action-packed episode of 'The Monster Hunter'! Once again, I, Dr. Abigail Finn, am close to bagging a mysterious creature. The ohonto worgra, or legendary Green Man of the Woods. Like the Yeti, Sasquatch, and Bigfoot—"

"Whoa, whoa! Hold it! Hold up! Cut! Stop the cameras, lady! This is private property! Ow! Ow-wow-ow!" "Sir, what can you tell our viewers about the recent sightings of the Green Man in these woods beyond your home?"

"Hey, should one of us go out there and help him?" said Gwen. "Are you kidding? He hit me with a baseball bat!" Ben argued.

"I got it." April assured. April walked outside, clearing her throat politely. "Hi there. Don't mind him. He's kind of the village idiot."

Donnie, leaning out the window to stare at his brother, tapped the turtle on the head, spooking him slightly. "Donatello!" Mikey whined. "Give me a heart attack why don't ya?" "Don't tempt me, Lame Brain." Donnie said in a soft voice. "Do you have any idea who that is out there?" Mikey only shrugged. "That's Dr. Abigail Finn. A brilliant technologist, gifted biologist."

"Sounds like your type, brainiac." Mikey huffed. "She's also a certifiable lunatic." Donnie added. "Goes around hunting monsters." "She ever find any?" Mikey asked. "Not yet." Donnie shook his head. "But the way she's drooling over that video of you, you may get to be her first." He shut the window without another word, leaving poor Mikey outside to dread over the situation.

"You know Mikey, reminds me of the time Ben was 'alien-napped' at the-" "Not. another. Word!" interrupted Ben. "I say we go after that video tape!" Mikey urged.

"Maybe this crazy doctor monster person will just give up and go away?" April suggested. "Dr. Abigail Finn doesn't give up." Donnie said. "If she can't find what she's looking for out there, she'll come looking in here. She's obsessed with monster hunting." Splinter thought for a moment. "Those who become obsessed are often their own worst enemy."

Meanwhile, Leo was in the barn going through old scrap metal, hoping to make new katana. "Looking good, Leo." Said Raph as he walked in. "Raph, I'm not in the mood." "For what?" Raph continued. "I don't need to hear how I messed up in New York. I got my shell kicked. I let everyone down. I lost my swords! I...I.." Raph walked up and said "Hang on, Leo. I wasn't gonna say anything like that. I was gonna ask what you were doing out here."

"Nothing" Leo said calmly. "Well that's too bad. Because I know what you should be doing and I think you do too." Back in the forest, Dr. Finn was setting up her hunting equipment while her assistant parker was adjusting the cryo-containment chamber. "The green man is close, parker. I can sense it. My ticket to the big time!" she said while working on the spy bots. "The scientific community will no longer be able to laugh behind my back. And our little cable show will finally get a network deal!"

Donnie and Mikey were up hiding in a tree trying to listen in on her, but could barely here because of Mikey's constant chewing. "What'd she say?" "I couldn't hear because someone was chewing pistachio nuts in my ear." "What?" said Mikey, while Donnie face palmed himself in annoyance. The two jumped down from the tree and looked around the truck to find the tape of Mikey.

Mikey walked into the opened back of the truck, not knowing it was a trap. "Now, if I were a video tape, where would I hide?" Donnie spotted him and told him "Mikey, get out of there! For all we know this thing could be a-" before he could finish, the alarm went off and the back of the truck closed. "A trap" Donnie finished. "Um, oops?" squirmed mikey.

Suddenly, the room began to fill with liquid nitrogen, and began to freeze the two. "Is it getting really cold in here, or is it just me?" said Mikey while shivering. "It's liquid nitrogen. Instant deep freeze." explained Donnie. "Hey, I'm a turtle! I'm already cold blooded." complained mikey. "We'll be ice blooded if we don't get out of here!"

While parker tried to secure the chamber, Mikey and Donnie were trying to break out, but with no luck. "We've got fifteen seconds before we become turtle-cycles." "It won't budge, and I think my butt's getting freezer burn. You're the brains of this operation Donnie, come up with something! '' Mikey said panicking. Looking around, Donnie noticed the pipes connected to the nitrogen containers, and used his bo staff to break them off.

As soon as that happened, the liquid nitrogen began to freeze the door over. "M-Mikey th-the door, now!" ordered Donnie. The two kicked the door open, and got free. "Br-bra-brain freeze" complained Mikey. Donnie, frozen and frustrated, told Mikey "C-come on, we have to go!" And immediately ran off.

Mikey and Donnie soon returned to the house from their little adventure trying to foil Abigail Finn's plan, which only seemed to end in them becoming half-frozen. They told their story about almost becoming instantly frozen while Casey got them some blankets and April filled a basin with hot water for their feet.

"I can't believe you bozos walked right into a trap!" Casey said incredulously. "I believe it." Splinter said. "All I know is that it's a good thing the Green Man's not real." Donnie said. "If that Dr. Finn ever got her hands on him, sheesh!"

"Hey, that's it!" Mikey said suddenly. "Little Miss Monster Hunter is still out there hunting the Green Man, right? She wants Green Men? We'll give her some! Serious, butt-kicking, ninja green men!" Everyone stared at him strangely. "I have a plan." mischievously said Mikey.

Back in the barn, Raph and Leo continued to work on two new katana blades using scrap metal and the furnace. Raph kept the fire going while Leo worked on re-shaping the metal. With the restraint of his bandages and wounds, the hammer kept falling out of his hand. He went to pick it back up, but Raph did it for him. Leo went back to finish hammering, when his bandages started falling off piece by piece. He took off the remaining bandages and finished working.

In the forest, Mikey, Don and Casey were working on a plan to get rid of Dr. Finn. "Mikey, this is your plan?" questioned don. "Yeah, this is crazy. And these leaves are itching me all over!" complained Casey. "Come on, you look great! Just followed my lead." assured Mikey. "Why do I get the feeling that this is just gonna make everything worse?"

"Where am I? Ugh! I-I'm stuck, I can't move!" Gwen had no idea where she was or what was going to happen to her. "Don't be afraid, child. When I'm through here, you won't remember a thing." said an unknown voice. "Who are you?!" demanded Gwen. "Someone who's going to take away the pain, and make everything better Ms. Tennyson." As Baxter stockman came from the shadows, he strapped a device on Gwen's helmet, and went over to the controls. She could see several other men monitoring her, and behind the glass, she could see a man wearing traditional samurai armor but without a helmet. The man lifted his hand, signaling his men to begin. When Dr. stockman pulled a lever, the room lit up as Gwen was immersed in excruciating pain.

Gwen woke up in an instant, covered in sweat. Ben saw her wake and walked over to her, hoping to calm her down. Master splinter, heard this, and too walked to Gwen. "A nightmare, young one?" She answered "No and yes, more like images, things I can't remember." Splinter answered "Perhaps you are fighting things you do not want to accept are true. Do not fight these memories, if you are to overcome them." Splinter got up and noticed the media, Dr. Finn and the others outside. He, Gwen, Ben and April went outside to see what was going on.

The four appeared, walking from the house towards the incoming group. Mikey showed them a tape they had, most likely stolen from Dr. Abigail Finn. Donnie talked with Splinter and April on the porch while Mikey began pulling out the reel of film from the tape. Minutes later, Casey appeared from the trees, dressed in a strange, furry costume. Everyone else started laughing at the poor man; especially ben, who nearly died of laughter.

Casey talked to everyone, most likely about the success of the plan. Then, Raph appeared, looking pretty happy if not proud. He pointed to the barn and walked towards it, everyone else following him. He pushed open the doors and announced something to the group. They moved just enough to see Leo step from the shadows, two newly made swords in hand. "Uh, hi everyone." Everyone gathered around him, smiling proudly.

Then, Gwen approached him, and apologized "Listen Leo, I'm sorry for what I did to you, I had no idea what I was-" before she could finish, tears formed in her eyes, but Leo smiled and replied "Don't blame yourself for something you had no control over. Besides, you're a pretty good fighter."

Ben put his arm around Gwen and comforted her. Then Leo spoke up and said "Guys, I think it's time we returned to New York. And finish our business with the Shredder. Once and for all." For once, his brothers shared a mutual agreement, and they raised their weapons with a cheer. Nothing could stop them, not even the Shredder.


End file.
